Dewey passes $4.5 million budget

Dewey Beach commissioners voted unanimously March 10 to pass a fiscal year 2024 budget that increases police salaries by 10% and all other positions by 6%.

The budget, which runs from April 1 to March 1, shows $4.58 million in operating revenues and $4.5 million in operating expenses, for a net income of just under $69,000. 

Commissioner Paul Bauer said meeting the transfer tax budget would be challenging, but possible. The most important thing, he said, is ensuring that salaries are in line; Commissioner Elisabeth Gibbings agreed.

Regarding the proposed 10% salary increase for police, Commissioner Gary Persinger said that Commissioner David Jasinski had previously suggested that the total increase not be changed, but that it could be allocated differently. A clear differential exists in the lower-rank salaries, he said.

Persinger said Jasinski suggested all officers could receive a 6% raise and the remaining 4% could be allocated to address gaps among lower salaries. Persinger said he would not vote against the budget, but that he didn’t see the justification for an overall 10% increase.

Chief Constance Speake said the proposed 10% increase will not be applied to her own salary, and that eliminating it could be a dealbreaker for her four veteran officers. 

These senior officers have been anticipating this raise, she said, and could easily walk because of the way the municipal pension is designed. Officers can take their years of service with them if they are hired in another municipality and still keep that time toward their pensions, she said.

Including herself, Speake said, the department currently comprises eight full-time officers, and the town cannot be safely covered with four officers, most of whom would be less experienced.

Mayor Bill Stevens said the charter requires commissioners to approve the budget on a per-department basis. Council has a responsibility to approve a number, he said, and the people running departments can allocate the funds based on merit and need. Bauer and Gibbings agreed.

Jasinski said he did not pose the suggestion with the idea that commissioners would be telling Speake what to do with anyone’s salary. Jasinski said he thought the 10% increase would be distributed evenly or by the department head’s choice, he said.

Persinger said commissioners do have more of a role than they seem to be implying.

“We are continually made aware that retention is a problem and we need to do something,” he said.

Salaries were raised last year, he said, with the strategy being to do more through better distribution. Looking at individual salaries, he said, gaps are smaller for senior officers and larger in lower ranks, so there is an opportunity to make an adjustment, which could be a better use of resources.

Speake said she was confident she could attract the staff she needs. Two returning seasonal officers will be old enough to attend the police academy in the fall, she said, and she has already received eight to 10 applications for full-time positions. Speake said she will be able to post positions for certified officers with the new salary.

The vote to approve the budget included the addition of $40,000 for beach trash removal expenses, as moved by Jasinski. After the meeting, Accounting/Human Resources Manager Sheena Hall said the addition of the $40,000 expense will decrease net incomes by that amount. 

Parking revenues will generate $1.4 million for the town, with $370,000 budgeted for seasonal passes, $660,000 for daily passes and $385,000 in parking meters. Hall said 5% of seasonal and daily parking goes to the streets and infrastructure fund monthly.

At the same time, parking ticket revenue is set to decrease from $250,000 in 2023 to $190,000 in 2024 as parking requirement education has increased compliance.

Accommodations tax is set at $775,000, up $75,000 from 2023, based on projected revenues from the new rental verification software and process. Hotel tax revenue is budgeted at $450,000, up from $392,500 in 2023. Half of all hotel tax gets set aside for streets and infrastructure each month, Hall said.

Transfer tax revenue is set at $500,000, a decrease of $200,000 from 2023, based on the limited number of properties in town and the number of properties that changed hands within the last two years. Of that, 8% is set aside each month, with 5% going to the rainy day fund and 3% to the streets and infrastructure fund, Hall said.

Building permits are projected at $550,000, up from $410,000 in 2023 because revenues have exceeded budget projections for the past two years, and because building permit revenue historically lags behind transfer tax revenue and will last at least one more year before returning to a historic average.

Including all projects which are paid for from set-aside funds or grants, such as the new town hall, Hall said, the budget shows $6.7 million in total revenue and $6.2 million in expenses, for a net income of $495,000.